About Toby Shorin

I’m Toby, a researcher and writer based in Brooklyn, New York. I’ve had weird and winding career through tech startups, consulting, and cofounding a nonprofit research organization. Along the way, I’ve become known for my writing about the way culture changes in tandem with technology.

My journey into mental health care began when I worked with a psychodynamic talk therapist, and then pursued group therapy, during a challenging period of my life. I grew enormously from these experiences, but knew those methods don’t always have the same effect for others. Since then, I’ve been exploring the world of established and unconventional therapies out of my own interest.

The more I looked around, the more I found, and the more I heard from everyone—psychiatrists and psychologists, coaches, alternative practitioners, and people looking for a therapist—how overwhelming the landscape has become. With dozens of wellness theories and therapy treatments, how should we begin to choose what to practice? There are so many ways to grow and heal: emotionally, spiritually, socially, and physically. Both therapists and patients are experimenting with different practices to find out what works best for them.

I also began to see that big shifts are happening in mental health care today. From online communities that self-diagnose and support one another, to nutritional psychiatry, to the rise of psychedelic therapies, to new health care policies, how we give and receive care is changing. These changes in turn affect how we think, feel, and move through our lives.

I started Care Culture to document these changes and to map the world of mental health care. My goal is to help patients and practitioners navigate this landscape, explore and experiment with different practices, and understand how our psyches are shaped by psychological treatments and tribes.